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March 2011

Aha! The muse that gives me ideas has given me the key to a puzzle I've been thinking about for a few years.

I had previously spoken about Spiritual Assets, which, by its oxymoronic name, seemed a bit off to me; and I had no way to incorporate the concept of power, except as an actual financial asset (fighter jets)... which doesn't work for things like picking up one's toddler to keep her from braining the cat with a toy godzilla because, as a parent, you're just bigger and can do that.

However, possibly due to a conversation about a month ago with Art Brock, I realized that what power is, is the ratio of one person or group's intangible asset to another person or group: more money, better relationships, more knowledge. It's not its own asset, it's a ratio.

And spiritual assets are then the use of one's power for the other person or group, given unconditionally. You have ultimate power over your child, but you would forego your own wellness for theirs; you have the ability to annihilate a group of people through superior military, but you help them build schools instead. We feel the "giving" but we aren't actually giving anything away. We aren't even giving away our power necessarily, because whatever we choose to give unconditionally increases trust, grows knowledge, improves health, and boosts our own sense of wellbeing.